Over the years I've learned that when it comes to signing free agents the Edmonton Oilers can fool you. Sometimes the big money guys are here for a good time (not a long time) and the secondary moderns are the ones follow.

Speaking about goaltenders with any kind of authority is folly. Even goalie coaches use vague phrases about mechanics and positioning. I believe the language of goalies exists so that these poor souls don't hear "why the hell didn't you stop the damn puck?" every 5 minutes. It sometimes seems as though G's are to hockey as pitchers are to baseball: even the best of them might get released, face several career crossroads and suffer massive amounts of booing at home and on the road.

Inside the pitcher/goalie realm live the knuckleballers who are represented in hockey by the Tim Thomas group (waiting until 30+ before putting it all together). That group enjoyed a giant FU moment this spring, when "elite goalie all his life" Roberto Luongo questioned Thomas' mechanics in game 2 only to let in an equally devastating goal in game 7 under similar on-ice circumstances (the Marchand wraparound, goal #2 in G7).

Making any kind of claim in regard to Yann Danis being from the Tim Thomas family of "elite goalies after 30" is ridiculous. That kind of good fortune combines talent, confidence, luck, karma and the Hockey Gods in equal measure. Still, the resume for Yann Danis suggests that he deserved the look he's getting from the Oil Drop.

Danis isn't an obvious choice for a free agent steal, but there are some things on his resume worth noting:

Some teams don't look past Evgeni Nabokov when searching the KHL for options, causing them overlook Khabarovsk's Danis. Initially a promising goalie prospect, Danis got stuck behind Halak and Carey Price in Montreal's system. He eventually found his way to the NHL, playing 43 games for the Islanders and Devils from 2008 to 2010, earning an impressive even-strength save percentage of .926 and quality start percentage over 60. This success could be due to the small sample size, but Danis certainly deserves the opportunity to prove it.

There are a few things going Danis' way at this time: he's young enough to have several seasons of effectiveness moving forward; even if he starts the season in OKC the Oilers situation is fluid; Khabibulin's downward trend may end up forcing the issue as soon as this fall; the Oilers have waited too long in free agency to add another goalie to the mix, meaning either they improve via trade or Danis is the de facto first option when the money runs out and the engine blows for the NHL tandem.

At this point the Edmonton Oilers have the look of a team that is about to rely heavily on a young goaltender. Devan Dubnyk is a solid player and may build on last year's foundation to solidify himself as an NHL starter. Yann Danis is certainly behind backup Nikolai Khabibulin at this point (who may well be considered the starter by Oilers management) but the recipe exists for Yann Danis to get a huge NHL opportunity this season.

Hockey's Tim Wakefield? I believe we're about to find out.

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Perhaps Danis will get a chance this coming year. Let's hope Oilers brass dont ignore him like they did Gerber, choosing to ride Khabibulin's coat tails down the slimy sphinter to 30th place. Who else do we see in OKC behind Danis?

Probably Roy - unless he stinks it up and is forced to start his pro career in the ECHL... I don't think we missed out too much on Gerber - 29 other teams passed on him as a FA and he's back in Europe...

Let's all pray in the name of the mullet that Khabby turns his game around and can properly caddy DD this year.. Wishful thinking probably, but I'm hoping Bulin can play 35 games and keep his save percentage at 90% and keep his GAA below 3...

I think the media and fans deserved to jump on Khabby for the year he had.

In what way was Dubnyk sheltered?

Dubnyk had nothing to lose?

No game in the NHL is a "safe" game or "sheltered" game. players play to win! there professional athletes!

I have to disagree with those statements, had Dubnyk under performed at anytime during the season the coaching staff or management may have reconsidered playing him more. That alone puts extreme amount of pressure on the goalie by the coaching staff, and exceedingly more pressure put on by Dubnyk himself. Not to mention that he is a back up and gets less rep's in practice and has to continually be mentally sharp through out the season cause his starts depend on how Khabby feels. I thought he was under played and deserved more starts based on his play. Khabbys done and deserves to be ripped.

Yep, it might be that DD and Khabi split the season. If so, its because the goal of the year is to develop DD and other players on the team. It's not about winning. I don't think they want another 30th place finish because it would be a hard sell to fans and even more importantly to the players. However, I think they would be fine with being in 20th spot all season (just 4-8 pts out of the playoffs) and dropping to 24th or so right at the end (when Khabi mysteriously gets loads of starts).

Based on the comments so far, most people here likely won't agree with me on this, but I honestly think Khabby will turn things around a bit this year.

I am betting that the off-ice issues last year affected his performance and although I don't expect him to be an all-star or MVP, I can definitely see him getting back to his prior form and post a SV% above .900.

I think the best would be to see a 50 / 50 split with DD to start. Then let the two goalies earn their starts based on performance, such that either one could get up to 60% of the starts.

While I would like to see DD get the majority of the starts, I like your thinking on this. Begin the season as a 50/50 split and if one outplays the other, than they earn more starts. I could live with that scenario as opposed to Khabby just being handed the starting job again.

Even though I don't think this will ever happen, lets say Khabi gets demoted. His contract would still stay on the books even though he's in the AHL because the over 40 rule. Correct? This is why I don't think it will happen. No way the Oilers have 3 goalie contracts on the cap. Otherwise I think Khabi would have been shipped out like Big Sexy last year.

While I would like to see DD get the majority of the starts, I like your thinking on this. Begin the season as a 50/50 split and if one outplays the other, than they earn more starts. I could live with that scenario as opposed to Khabby just being handed the starting job again.

I don't even think you decide on the 50/50 split at this point. Training camp is specifically designed to assess a player's form before the season starts. That's why you have a TC - to see who should be playing where and how much.

If Khabby comes to camp and is shutting down everything on skates and Dubnyk isn't, then Khabby should start most of the games in September. I think that's highly unlikely, but the point is that if the objective is to win (and I'd like to think it is this year for a change) then the coach should play the goalie that gives you the best chance to do that. Based on last year's statistics, that puts DD in net. Last year, though, doesn't mean so much come September. In a perfect world, the guy playing his face off in training camp should be the guy starting your games and he should stay there until his play suggests that you do something different. The name on the sweater shouldn't be the determining factor for a team that wants to win; the only thing that should matter is whether the pucks are staying out of the net or not.

I don't even think you decide on the 50/50 split at this point. Training camp is specifically designed to assess a player's form before the season starts. That's why you have a TC - to see who should be playing where and how much.

If Khabby comes to camp and is shutting down everything on skates and Dubnyk isn't, then Khabby should start most of the games in September. I think that's highly unlikely, but the point is that if the objective is to win (and I'd like to think it is this year for a change) then the coach should play the goalie that gives you the best chance to do that. Based on last year's statistics, that puts DD in net. Last year, though, doesn't mean so much come September. In a perfect world, the guy playing his face off in training camp should be the guy starting your games and he should stay there until his play suggests that you do something different. The name on the sweater shouldn't be the determining factor for a team that wants to win; the only thing that should matter is whether the pucks are staying out of the net or not.

True to a point.

ie if Hemsky gets shut out in TC and Eager gets 5 goals, I don't think we're going to see Eager on line 1 and Hemsky on line 4.

Other then the odd case, past performance should mean a heck of alot more then a few weeks in training camp.

Even though I don't think this will ever happen, lets say Khabi gets demoted. His contract would still stay on the books even though he's in the AHL because the over 40 rule. Correct? This is why I don't think it will happen. No way the Oilers have 3 goalie contracts on the cap. Otherwise I think Khabi would have been shipped out like Big Sexy last year.

I thought that if Khabby was sent to the minors, his salary would not count against the cap, but I was incorrect. I googled it and CapGeek.com had the following in their FAQ section:

What is a "35-plus" contract?
Players who sign multi-year contracts when they are age 35 or older (calculated on June 30 of the season the contract begins) count toward the cap under all circumstances, regardless of where (or if) the player is playing. The only cap relief is $100,000 from the player's cap hit if he is assigned to the minors after the first year of the contract.
CBA reference: Section 50.5 (d-i-B-5) (P. 203)

So the only way out of this contract is find a GM willing to take on the big cap hit on an aging goalie, with a bad back, who can't stop a beach ball.....where is Mike Milbury when you need him?!!!

ie if Hemsky gets shut out in TC and Eager gets 5 goals, I don't think we're going to see Eager on line 1 and Hemsky on line 4.

Other then the odd case, past performance should mean a heck of alot more then a few weeks in training camp.

Training camp isn't a one-day exercise. I understand what you're saying, but between you and me if Hemsky goes through all of camp and doesn't find the twine even once (let's not complicate things with assists) then I'm thinking he doesn't start on line-1 anyway.

History plays a part - you're right - but hockey is an awful lot about "What have you done for me lately".

Training camp isn't a one-day exercise. I understand what you're saying, but between you and me if Hemsky goes through all of camp and doesn't find the twine even once (let's not complicate things with assists) then I'm thinking he doesn't start on line-1 anyway.

History plays a part - you're right - but hockey is an awful lot about "What have you done for me lately".

I am in agreement with OB1 on this that past performance should weigh heavier, but you are right that "what have you done for me lately" definitely plays a part in the decision making.

If Khabi goes to jail or is broken and on LTIR, the Oilers can kind of escape the cap hit - but other than that - they are stuck with it.

Honestly the cap hit does not matter this year or probably next year either. What I am sure Kates and managment would be conserned about is actual dollars. I'm sure it stung to send Souray to the minors and still hand him his pay check. It would sting just as bad to send Khabi to the minors and still pay him his money. That is why I am sure he will be with the Oilers no matter what his play is like.

WOW as an Oiler fan I am truley disappointed in the garbage we signed this offseason. Vokun is getting paid 1.5 million and we couldn"t make a play for him? I'm ok with Barker and Symth, but over all we are not gonna make the playoffs... again, and my grandpa who is turing 87 will never again see the Oilers return to greatness or even mediocrity. I honestly hate this "next year we'll be better" crap I've been hearing for the last 5 years.

It's definitely a little from column A, and a little from column B; however, my instinct is that this coaching/management group has been more interested in a player's past performance and future potential than his performance in training camp.
Exhibit A would be Theo Peckham's training camp last year. Outplayed by a number of d-men, but the coaches liked what they'd seen in the past and felt he still had the most potential of the bubble d-man group, so he made it despite a poor training camp.

Ya buddy I can sympathize with you. My grandpa passed away last year and he was a big Oilers fan. Never in my life have i seen my grandpa change the channel during an Oilers game, until last year. He was so bitter toward the team because he said they had no respect for there fan base and that "trying" to tank was a very dishonorable way to rebuild a team. Obviously my views were different from his but I gotta respect what he was tryin to say.

khabby has to be number 1 or the back up. The oilers cant afford to look like a team that signs long term deals to just demote players if they under perform.Young players obviously want long term contracts, how does that look if we have buried guys in the minors back to back seasons? When khabby gets "injured" or goes to jail we call up the new kid and give dd a chance to prove why management chose him over jdd.

I do like the Danis signing, its what the scouts get paid for, trying to find these kinda guys who were tucked deep in the back corner. Its another Barker type signing; tremendous upside, low risk for one year.

The crease just got crowded with the 2 Finnish goalies this year, throwing in Bunz and Roy.

I think this is DD's year to seize the #1 position. I think mentally, the management want to protect him from being "the guy", but secretly, he is the guy now.
The rumour going around "los internets" was that the Oil were peddling Khabby to anyone.
Old Khabby still has it in him to do well in short stretches, just doesnt have the stamina anymore. See his great starts the last two years running. He goes downhill with too many starts though.

Training camp isn't a one-day exercise. I understand what you're saying, but between you and me if Hemsky goes through all of camp and doesn't find the twine even once (let's not complicate things with assists) then I'm thinking he doesn't start on line-1 anyway.

History plays a part - you're right - but hockey is an awful lot about "What have you done for me lately".

Each situation is obviously different.

If the team feels Eberle is close to Hemsky going in, and Ebs puts has a steller camp while Hemsky struggles, Eberle will probably start as 1C.

However, Mike Comrie scored more goals then both Crosby and Malkin last pre-season, I'm confident their was never any debate in Pits as to which two centers will start the year at 1C and 2C.

Marty Gerber also put up a SV% that was at a minimum .27 better then both DD and Bulin.... and he clearly wasn't getting a sniff at the starters role

Coming from a guy who's team hasn't won the cup since 1967! The Leafs have sucked WAY longer than the Oil my friend, and contrary to Burke's opinion, they will suck this year too!

If Lowe was half the man Burke is your team wouldn't have sucked so bad for so long! Unlike your team we don"t believe in tanking our team to be better. Thats laughable. 2 first overall picks in two years has anyone every sucked that much before? Nope... Edmonton continues to break records for suckiness!

If Lowe was half the man Burke is your team wouldn't have sucked so bad for so long! Unlike your team we don"t believe in tanking our team to be better. Thats laughable. 2 first overall picks in two years has anyone every sucked that much before? Nope... Edmonton continues to break records for suckiness!

I'm happy to say the Nords out sucked the Oil for three straight 1st overalls.

Training camp isn't a one-day exercise. I understand what you're saying, but between you and me if Hemsky goes through all of camp and doesn't find the twine even once (let's not complicate things with assists) then I'm thinking he doesn't start on line-1 anyway.

History plays a part - you're right - but hockey is an awful lot about "What have you done for me lately".

"what have you done for me lately" is that not more for fans? I seem to remember Jones getting a spot over Reddox and Peckham over Belle because of what they did in the previous year and not TC.

Based on what, a couple of mediocre 2nd line players and a crumbling defense. O, I forgot you have a vet in net who played pretty good for the last quarter of a season.

" and we've only just started rebuilding"

Pretty sure you have been rebuilding for the better part of the last decade Oilers are entering year 2. But I guess you could say we have been rebuilding longer considering we are actually building something and not just remaining a solid contender for 9th place.

Well as long as your happy about that... And look what happend to them, I believe thery're called the Avs now... Way to compare yourself to crap that USED to be in the league...

You are right, the Oil are basements dwellers, there is no denying it. The good thing is, the rebuild is well under way, with lots of high end young talent to build around which makes for a very bright future.

I am sure if we look at your Leafs, we will see that Burke has them stocked full of these types of players that puts them so far ahead of the Oilers. Let's see....there's Kadri and Aulie....that can't be it, can it? I know, he must have signed some high end UFA's to take them to the playoffs....No Richards? Ehrhoff?, wait, they signed Connolly? OH, that's who is going to take them to the promised land!... Good luck with that!

Enjoy watching Seguin and Hamilton dominate the team they should have been drafted by for the next decade.

I'll enjoy that and you can enjoy every free agent worth having on your team flipping you off and signing for less money somewhere else. I think everyone in Edmonton should buy a can of febreeze, go outside and just spray it into the air. Then maybe someone will want to sign there!

In 2006, Patrick Thoresen was a virtual unknown. Came into camp and played his way onto the roster. Did great for a couple of months . . . and then fell into the abyss of NHL-players-past. Right or wrong, that was MacT's decision at the time.

You'd be right to point out that that was then and this is now. Last year, many fans thought that Reddox had played his way into a spot because of a strong camp and that Omark wasn't even given a fair chance at all to make the team. Renney didn't seem to care; it appeared he had his mind pretty well set before camp ever started.

In my original thought here, I stated that I thought a player should have his place on the team determined in large part on camp performance. Yeah, you'll get the odd Thoresen that dissapoints you, but that's why you have a farm team and that's when you call up someone who is doing better at that time. Still, I have to admit that I don't believe Renney (or even Quinn, for that matter) and I see eye-to-eye on the value of camp performance.

I think the better goalie in camp should start the season. I also think you're on the mark to suggest that's not necessarily what will really happen under this coaching/management team.

You are right again, if the Oil miss the playoff this year, it will be 6 in a row. Not as bad as 7, but bad nonetheless.

Wait, we at least made it to the Cup final in 2006. When was the last time the Leafs played for the Cup?

Leave it to an Oiler fans to live in the past. I suggest you take your Gretzky jerseys off cuz you fools have been wearing it since 1990, and you're in dire need of a shower. Leafs will make the playoffs before the Oilers and by then Hall, Eberle, Pajaarvi and Hopkins will want to play for a real team and ask for a trade. But you guys are used to that, no??

Is the pot calling the kettle black? Anyways I had fun on your page. Come visit me on my page, but bring your A game cause all I saw here were a bunch of C's and D's.

By the way, I did just visit your page. I have to ask, does anyone other than you go there? The place is a ghost town. There are articles on there (good articles) that are days old that have little or no comments on them.

No wonder you came to Oilersnation, you just want someone to talk to! It all make sense now.

In 2006, Patrick Thoresen was a virtual unknown. Came into camp and played his way onto the roster. Did great for a couple of months . . . and then fell into the abyss of NHL-players-past. Right or wrong, that was MacT's decision at the time.

You'd be right to point out that that was then and this is now. Last year, many fans thought that Reddox had played his way into a spot because of a strong camp and that Omark wasn't even given a fair chance at all to make the team. Renney didn't seem to care; it appeared he had his mind pretty well set before camp ever started.

In my original thought here, I stated that I thought a player should have his place on the team determined in large part on camp performance. Yeah, you'll get the odd Thoresen that dissapoints you, but that's why you have a farm team and that's when you call up someone who is doing better at that time. Still, I have to admit that I don't believe Renney (or even Quinn, for that matter) and I see eye-to-eye on the value of camp performance.

I think the better goalie in camp should start the season. I also think you're on the mark to suggest that's not necessarily what will really happen under this coaching/management team.

I'm confident the vast majority (if not all) managment/coaches choose the roster this way, 95% of the time.

Training camp isn't a one-day exercise. I understand what you're saying, but between you and me if Hemsky goes through all of camp and doesn't find the twine even once (let's not complicate things with assists) then I'm thinking he doesn't start on line-1 anyway.

History plays a part - you're right - but hockey is an awful lot about "What have you done for me lately".

I don't know if this has been answered yet, I dont feel like reading through all the post's but, what happens if Khabby isn't even at camp?

When does his sentence start? Dubnyk could be the #1 going into camp.

What happens when Khabby comes back? Does Khabby become the back up or starter?

Leave it to an Oiler fans to live in the past. I suggest you take your Gretzky jerseys off cuz you fools have been wearing it since 1990, and you're in dire need of a shower. Leafs will make the playoffs before the Oilers and by then Hall, Eberle, Pajaarvi and Hopkins will want to play for a real team and ask for a trade. But you guys are used to that, no??

Since 1990? You know Gretzky was in L.A. that season don't you? You made have heard about a big trade back then?....August 9, 1988 ring a bell? Now had you said Messier, I would have thought that you knew something about hockey, but you just proved otherwise. Thanks for clearing that up for me.

Since 1990? You know Gretzky was in L.A. that season don't you? You made have heard about a big trade back then?....August 9, 1988 ring a bell? Now had you said Messier, I would have thought that you knew something about hockey, but you just proved otherwise. Thanks for clearing that up for me.

All I got from that is...blah blah blah. I was three at the time so... whatever. I'm sure you even remeber what you were wearing that fateful day, cuz ur probably still wearing it...